


For Your Happiness

by ToujoursMiraculous



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Love Square Endgame, Lukanette, Present to Future then back to the Present which is then the Past, So much angst, Struggling Adrien
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-07
Updated: 2020-01-21
Packaged: 2020-02-27 16:06:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18742426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToujoursMiraculous/pseuds/ToujoursMiraculous
Summary: One moment, one decision can change the course of everything. Adrien had no idea that this one day would live with him forever and would lead to him becoming Timetagger ten years later to change it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this idea for awhile now, but was struck with inspiration to start writing it!
> 
> Said inspiration can be found while listening to Lenni-Kim's "I'm Still Waiting For You" which describes this fic pretty well.

It was just a normal day in the city of Paris. Citizens were going about their day, and like usual, they were hoping today was a day that Hawk Moth would let the people have some peace.

Today happened to be one of those days.

Little did they know, another kind of villain was about to burst into existence.

 

Marinette started the day off as usual. She woke up, very annoyed at her alarm clock. She stumbled down the stairs, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. After eating breakfast, she got dressed, brushed her hair and teeth, grabbed her school bag, and headed out the bakery door with minimal time to spare.

Adrien also started his day like he normally would. It was the exact same routine day in and day out - minus a sudden photoshoot that would start well before dawn - Nathalie made sure his schedule was perfect and wasted no time. But that was okay with him because his routine led him to school each morning, or afternoon at the latest.

As Adrien’s car pulled up in front of the school building, Marinette was rushing towards the stairs.

“Marinette!” He called a greeting to her. She stopped, spinning around at the sound of her name.

“Oh, hey Adrien!” She waved, waiting for him to catch up. His bodyguard grunted impatiently but decided it’d be alright to take off.

“Remember how I asked you once if you’d like to go to one of my photo shoots?” he asked. She blinked with surprise before she nodded in reply. “I was thinking you could come to my next one, I think it’d be more your style than my previous ones.”

If Marinette was being honest, she would’ve forgotten all about it, had he not mentioned it again. She thought he had just been polite in his offer.

“Really? When is it?” She asked excitedly.

Adrien grinned. “It’s after school, I hope it’s not too short notice. I only found out the details last night.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine! I don’t have anything planned after school.” Then it struck her that she did in fact have something to do later. “Well, actually I was supposed to head over to Juleka and Luka’s,” she said with a scratch of her head, “but we didn’t have any _specific_ plans. They wouldn’t want me to miss out on an opportunity like this. I’ll let Juleka know when we get to class.”

“Okay, if you’re sure they wouldn’t mind,” said Adrien with a chuckle and a smile. 

 

“I’m sure. I’ll make sure to schedule another time with Juleka when I cancel today.”

He nodded. “Good idea. Anyways, we better get to class or we’ll be late.”

“Right.”

 

They walked in a comfortable silence for a few moments, as they entered the building. Then Adrien’s pace slowed, drawing Marinette’s attention. 

“Adrien?” 

“Ah,” he rubbed the back his neck nervously. “By the way, how’s Luka doing? You go over there a lot, right?” His green eyes locked onto Marinette.

“Luka? He’s doing great. And yeah, I go over there pretty often. Why?”

Adrien frowned. “Just wondering. I haven’t seen him in awhile. Or you outside of school.”

“Oh,” her smile brightened. “We’ve been pretty busy with band stuff, so that’s probably why. Luka writes all of the songs music, and with the album coming out, and-” Marinette abruptly cut herself off, her face suddenly flush. “Well, we’ve just been really busy.”

It took Adrien a second too long for his brief smile to appear as his heart fluttered at her words. “I see. Can I ask you for a favor?”

“Sure, what is it?”

“I forgot something in my locker and I don’t want to make you late for class. Could you tell Ms. Bustier that I’ll be right there?”

Marinette smiled. “No problem!”

“Thanks, Marinette. See you in class,” he waved and watched her head for the stairs before he turned around and headed into the empty locker room. 

 

“Good job, Casanova! You’ve finally taken my advice and chosen one of your admirers!” Plagg beamed slyly.

“What?”

“I wasn’t going to say anything, but she was my only choice out of all of them. Very kind, and the food at her bakery… I’m going to be eating so much delicious food! All the cheese bread…” Plagg started drooling.

Adrien’s eyebrow quirked. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I didn’t choose anyone.”

“Oh? Were you not questioning Marinette just now about that blue-haired Luka kid?”

“So?” he said defensively.

Plagg made a noise. “You were just making conversation then, asking if she spends a lot of time with him?”

He remained silent, his shoulders slumping as he sat down on the bench.

“What’s up?” asked Plagg, landing on his shoulder. “You’ve been acting a bit weird lately, and after that conversation, at least now I know the reason.”

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “Ever since I compared Marinette’s handwriting to that anonymous poem, and after thinking it was from Ladybug…”

He closed his eyes and his brows pinched together. “It’s pretty stupid.”

“I’ll be the judge of that. Hurry up and spit it out, or your teacher will be wondering what’s taking you so long.”

Adrien slowly opened his eyes as he let out a deep breath. “There are two different sides to this that I’ve been obsessing over, both of which involve Marinette being the one to have written that poem, which in itself is probably absurd for me to think-” 

Plagg opened his mouth to cut in with a comment, but Adrien ignored him.

“-but I just can’t seem to let it go. There’s the side where Marinette wrote that poem and - and I guess I don’t really know how to handle it if it’s really her that wrote it. How could she like me, really? I’m just a guy who models clothes while she goes out there and does what she can to help everyone whenever they need her, even if she’s risking something to do so.”

“Thus your ‘everyday Ladybug’ comment. Continue,” added Plagg. 

“Then there’s the side where, because I thought it was Ladybug’s poem at first, then Marinette’s, I came up with the thought ' _what if they’re the same person_. Which is even crazier! But now it’s been nagging at me. I want to find out, but I don’t want to break Ladybug’s trust. If they _are_ the same person, that makes it even harder.”

“... You lost me. Why would it be harder?”

“Marinette knows the thoughts and feelings Chat Noir has that I never talked to Ladybug about. If they’re the same person, she’s always known them. And yet, she’s never loved Chat Noir. When Marinette said she loved me as Chat, I don’t think she really meant it. I don’t know why she said it in the first place, but she never had feelings for me as Chat Noir, she’s made that abundantly clear. It was nice, thinking someone would actually love that side of me, even if it was only for awhile.”

Adrien sighed and stood up, going to his locker. “It’s harder because I care so much about Marinette to the point where-” he cut himself off, before mentally editing what he was about to say, “Where I would do anything to make sure she’s safe and happy. I know she cares about me, she cares about everyone, but…”

“But she doesn’t care _for_ you?” Plagg filled in for him.

He didn’t reply. If she really had feelings for Adrien, if she was Ladybug, would it be enough that she didn't love Chat Noir? Would Chat Noir being Adrien make her change her mind if she did in fact like him? Not to mention....

“I thought you said you didn’t choose anyone. Yet you care if she has feelings for you? Sounds like choosing to me! Besides, how do you know she doesn’t? If she wrote that poem, she probably does!”

“Which brings me back to Luka,” Adrien shut his locker door a little harder than intended.

Plagg sighed and let out a groan. “We’ll talk about him later. For now, you have to go to class. I don’t want to hear you whining about getting in trouble for skipping class and being taken out of school by your father as punishment.”

Adrien smiled. “Stop acting like you don’t care, I know you do.”

“Yeah, yeah.” 

“Thanks,” he pat him on the head briefly, then opened his jacket to let his Kwami hide for the day. “I know you don’t like anything being cheesy other than cheese itself, but I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

He thought he heard a sniffle while he walked the empty halls to class.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Photoshoot and

“Are you ready, Marinette?” Adrien asked her once the final bell rang.

Marinette grabbed her backpack. “All set!” she glanced back at Alya as they were leaving the classroom. Alya shot her a thumbs up and a wink. 

During lunch, Marinette had called her parents to make sure she had permission to go to Adrien’s photoshoot. ‘ _Oh, of course, sweetie! It’ll be good for you! Have a good time!_ ’ Sabine had said. She also had informed the girls about Adrien’s offer, to which they were shocked she hadn’t mentioned it earlier and gushed about how amazing an opportunity it was for her.

Marinette nervously climbed into Adrien’s car ahead of him as he gestured for her to go first.

“What makes today’s photoshoot so special?” she asked once he got in after her and the car started to move.

“It’s Father’s Spring Line. Lots of floral prints and pastels. I thought it seemed very much like you, so I arranged it with him to let you come. He even invited you to model with me if you’d be up for that.”

She blinked. “M-Me?! Model? With _you_?”

Adrien chuckled. Her flustered expression was always so adorable. “Only if you want to.”

Marinette slipped into silence for the rest of their car ride. She kept going back and forth in her mind about whether or not she should model with him or just observe. She looked down inside her purse, Tikki was beaming up at her. _Tikki would say I should seize this opportunity,_ she thought. Although she was extremely nervous, and worried that she’d mess up in front of Adrien, she had to take the chance.

“We’re here,” Adrien said warmly. 

They got out of the car to a beautiful, yet small park along the Seine. From one angle, you saw beautiful shamrock green grass, tall trees whose branches reached out wide to shade the earth below, and lightly colored flowers. From another, the light blue water glistened in the sunlight. It was no wonder this spot was picked, everything was gorgeous.

“I’ll model,” she said, not meeting his eyes.

“Really?” his face brightened considerably, not that he looked unhappy before. “You will?”

“I’m not really a model, but...why not, right?”  
“I think you’re beautiful,” Adrien voiced without thinking. 

Marinette’s breath caught in her throat as she stared at him.

Now it was his turn to be flustered. “I mean, you’re really pretty, why couldn’t you be a model? Anyway, I’m going to go get changed.” He cleared his throat and whisked away to the changing room setup for them, before he said anything else he’d regret.

Marinette stood on the spot, watching him go.

“...Was that just my imagination, Tikki, or did Adrien just call me beautiful?” her shock slowly turned into pure joy, a smile spread across her face.

“He did!” Tikki shrieked, still hidden.

Giggling and fighting the urge to scream, she sat at the base of a tree, trying to put her feelings and excitement to the side. She was not going to embarrass herself here. At least she was going to try to prevent it to the best of her ability.

After she took a few deep breaths, Adrien left the changing room wearing a pastel blue button up, a white t-shirt with the black butterfly logo front and center, pale yellow jeans, and converse that matched his blue overshirt. 

Marinette and Adrien switched places, except he remained standing under the tree to prevent getting dirt on his clothes. He watched Marinette go into the dressing room with the clothes an assistant handed her.

“I can’t believe I said that to her,” he groaned into his hands. 

Plagg snickered.

“The only reason I’ve ever been able to say that to Ladybug is because I was wearing a mask! And she’d just laugh and blow it off. It wouldn’t really matter if she was annoyed or whatever, because we’re partners and she can’t get rid of me. But this-!”

“Don’t worry, Adrien, I don’t think there’s a girl out there that’ll hate you for saying she’s beautiful. Relax, kid. You’re only overthinking it because you like her.”

Adrien glanced over towards the changing room. Just in time to see her walk out of the changing room in a dress. The assistant called Adrien over so they could start the shoot, and as he got closer, he noticed the details of her outfit.

A white cami dress with a blue and yellow floral print sprinkled around the garment. It was tied around her waist with a tie made of the same fabric. Her hair was partially down, some of it curtained down to reach her shoulders, but at the crown of her head rested a bun, not unlike the one she wore at the movie premiere.  
Marinette tensed as a makeup artist touched up her face. 

“Don’t worry, everything will be fine,” Adrien assured as he approached. “It’s really nothing special once you’ve done it enough.”

“I’m just afraid my photos won’t turn out well and that I’ll disappoint your dad…..” she clutched her hands to her chin.

He gave her a sympathetic smile and put his hands on her shoulders. “My dad really likes you, you know. He wouldn’t have agreed for you to come here and model for him if he didn’t! He knows how capable you are, and I do too. I’ll be right here to help you if you need me.”

Marinette nodded. “Thanks, Adrien.”

“Single shots first! Marinette, could we get you over here please?” the assistant Marinette learned was named Rachelle called.

“Coming!”

“I’ll be right beside Giuseppe, so look to me if you need me,” Adrien said behind her.

 

She was brought to the perfect spot, where the scenery and lighting was just so, or so she was told.

“Perfetto! Relax, and imagine you’re taking a stroll down a walkway full of beautiful flowers and all you want to do is admire them! Yes, that’s it! Hold your hand out as if to pick one up. Yes! Bravo, Marinette, bravo! Now walk slowly towards us, yes, oh!”

Marinette stumbled over her feet and almost fell to the ground, but she caught herself just in time. She looked up, grimacing a little as she caught her foot a bit on the stone beneath her. Adrien hadn’t moved, but he had his arm stretched out, as if he could reach her. She flashed a smile and waved her hands out in front of her. “I’m okay! I’m okay!”

“As long as you’re sure, Marinette,” Rachelle hesitated with her clipboard tightly in hand.

“I’m fine, don’t worry.”

“Okay, let’s try it again!”

Marinette finished her photos with only minor hiccups, then swapped places with Adrien. Rachelle explained to her details and challenges with photoshoots, how much influence and say the designer has over the entire shoot and the models chosen. By the time Adrien was done, she felt very informed. 

“Now can we get you two together? Then we’ll wrap it up for the day.” Rachelle pushed them together, their shoulders bumping into each other.

“Hold hands, please, and pretend you’re a couple on a date!” Giuseppe shouted at them from behind his camera lens. 

Adrien took Marinette’s hand, and they stood there stiffly.

“No, no, no! Not like that! Re-lax! You’re a couple, remember? Love, passion, give it to me!”

 _I’ve held his hand before, no big deal,_ thought Marinette. _I’ve even kissed him on the cheek and was one slip-up away from confessing my feelings to him! This is nothing...this is nothing..._

_I’ve held her hand before, so why am I so nervous? I can hold Ladybug’s hand no problem. Holding Marinette’s should be even easier. This is nothing…this is nothing…_

Their second attempt went much better than the first. As the photos progressed, their nerves and visible tension cleared. Giuseppe praised how natural they were together as they went through different poses. They were given ice cream to pose with in one shot, a kite in another, and Rachelle even set up a picnic.

Marinette and Adrien were finishing up their shoot when Marinette spotted a blue-haired boy near Rachelle.

“Luka?” Marinette gasped. She stumbled again, but Adrien caught her before she could do any damage. 

“Stop! Who is this boy and what is he doing here?!”

“I’m sorry, Giuseppe, he’s a friend. Can I have a minute?”

Giuseppe sighed. “Alright, if you must,” he dismissed her with a wave of his hand.

“I didn’t know you were a model, Marinette!”

She laughed. “I’m not, Gabriel Agreste invited me to join today. This is just a one-time thing.”

“I don’t know, you look really stunning. They’d be crazy not to ask you to model again.”

“Luka!” she blushed. “Anyway, what are you doing here?”

“I saw you from the houseboat and so I wanted to come say hi...and to maybe ask you out when you’re done here?”

“Oh?” Adrien heard Marinette say. He tried really hard to pretend he couldn’t hear their conversation and stared down at his feet with his hands stuffed in his pockets. “What for?” she laughed, so carefree and happy, the sound pained him, making him feel almost sick. Adrien knew he should be happy for her, but it crushed him to hear the grin in her tone. He walked away, far enough away, not bothering to look back, not wanting to hear more. Luka was a great guy, he had to admit. And that thought had been eating him up inside.

No matter how much he thought about it, he just couldn’t seem to stand above Luka.  
They were both nice, both musically talented. But he was free to spend time with her whenever she wanted, whenever he wanted. And he was free to do the things he loves, without interference. That was something Marinette and Luka had in common that he could never relate to.

But worst of all, Luka had already expressed his feelings for her before Adrien could even sort out his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angst is about to start. Sorry, not sorry.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien confides in the one being he can talk to. Marinette starts to worry.

Adrien would probably get in some kind of trouble if Nathalie informed his father that he decided on his own accord that he was done for the day, but he didn’t care. There was no way he could go back to posing for the cameras with Marinette, pretending to be together. Pretending. Faking. Acting. When she was just going to leave with Luka. He’d rather not have to witness that.

He also wanted to make sure his emotions didn’t get the best of him. He may have been able to avoid getting akumatized so far, but he didn’t want to push his luck. Especially not now when Marinette would be put in the middle of it if he was.

Adrien really didn’t understand how he would’ve been okay with this just awhile ago. Yet now he was dealing with that fresh feeling of rejection because of another guy, only a bit different since she didn’t actually turn him down. If, and he didn’t like it when his mind went here, Marinette was Ladybug, was the boy she talked about Luka? 

 

_“It-it's not what you think. See...I'm really into fashion, and, umm…”_

_“Are you lying?”_

_“No! I'm so not into you—I mean, sure, I'm interested in you, but, um, not in that way; well, you know.”_

 

Adrien sat alone on a park bench overlooking the Seine, thinking about his encounters with her about her feelings - or lack thereof.

 

_“Chat Noir has every right to be in love with Ladybug. She's very lucky to have you. And just because you and I aren't in love with each other doesn't mean that we can't be friends.“  
_

 

He leaned his head back to look at the clear blue sky above. “If Marinette is Ladybug, she very clearly doesn’t love Chat Noir at all. And she’s said she’s not interested in Adrien, either.”

“Are you sure Marinette wasn’t lying about not liking you? Maybe she was just nervous,” Plagg offered.

“Marinette doesn’t lie,” he sighed. 

“But if she was scared…?”

“She’s always seemed so uncomfortable and... different around me. But she’s not around Luka. It’s like she comes alive when she’s with him. Did you see them at the ice rink?” 

The image of Luka appearing at the right time to catch Marinette, helping her tie her skates, and offering his hand to lead her onto the ice flashed in his mind's eye. He and Kagami simply skated around the rink, holding hands. But _them_ , they skated like pros! They looked like they were having such a good time with each other….

“Whether Marinette is Ladybug, or not, I know she’s interested in Luka. I’m not blind.”

“Could’ve fooled me,” Plagg mumbled too low for Adrien to hear. “It’s possible to be interested in two people at once. Look at you with Marinette and Ladybug. Or even Ladybug and Kagami, remember? So what if she does like Luka, shouldn’t you try and swoop in to take her from him?”

“But what if it’s Luka she really wants to be with? He seems to make her happy. I don’t want to ruin that and hurt her,” he stared down at his hands, not really seeing them.

“There’s one thing I’ll agree with Kagami about. You need to start doing things for yourself and do what you want to do for once. What harm would it do if you told her how you feel?”

“She could reject me and not want to be friends with me anymore?” he shrugged with an attempt at a half-smile. 

“Marinette doesn’t seem the type to stop being friends with someone just because they’ve admitted that they like her. Remember Evillustrator? Nathaniel confessed to her as him, and they’re fine.”

“Nathaniel was over her after Ladybug saved him, not to mention they’re not close friends.”

“Ooh? You’d consider you and Marinette close friends, then?”

“She’s one of my best friends. And she’s the only one I trust to confide in and seek advice about things that are bothering me, even if I can only do so as Chat Noir. I don’t want to risk upsetting her and losing that.” Adrien stood up, with a determined grunt. “So I’ve decided that I’m going to wait. If it turns out she’s not seeing him, I’ll tell her. If she is, I’ll step back and leave her be.”

“But Adrien…”

“No, Plagg. Above all, I won’t lose her. Even if it means I’m just a friend to her.”

 

 

“Where’s Adrien?” Marinette asked Rachelle after looking around the set and not seeing any sign of him.  
“He left for the day,” she said. “He didn’t look very happy when he left, I’m not sure why,” and with a brief shrug, she walked off to help pack up.

“But - But I was going to ask if he wanted to go get something to eat with me….” she muttered to herself. “Do you think he’s alright?”

Tikki stuck her head out of the purse. “You should call and ask him!”

Marinette thought it over a moment, then nodded, pulling out her phone and called.

“It went straight to voicemail,” she gasped in shock, holding the phone out, not expecting to hear the abrupt voicemail message. 

“Maybe he had to leave to take care of something and forgot to turn his phone back on. You can ask him at school tomorrow.”

“I don’t know, something just doesn’t feel right, Tikki…” Marinette was considering transforming into Ladybug to find him. With his phone off and him leaving a photoshoot early without alerting anyone was definitely not very Adrien. 

Tikki glanced over and saw Luka sitting in the shade, waiting. “If you’ve forgotten, there’s another boy wanting to spend some time with you.”

Marinette’s head snapped over to him. He glanced up and gave her a wave. 

“Oh, right. Now that the photoshoot’s been cut short… Luka!” she called over to him. “You’re still here?”

“I thought I’d stick around in case it ended sooner than expected. After Adrien walked off, I thought you’d be free.”

Marinette put on a smile, but she was still worried. She wanted more than anything to go and find him now, but between Tikki discouraging her, and Luka waiting for her, she tried her best to put him out of her mind.

“I’ll bet you’re hungry after today?” asked Luka. “Because I know a really good place to grab a bite.”

“Absolutely starving. Thanks, Luka.”

 

 

The next day at school, Marinette’s first priority was checking up on Adrien to see if he was alright. She found him talking with Nino and Kim.

“Adrien!” she called as she rushed up. “Is everything okay? You left so abruptly yesterday, and I couldn’t reach you.”

He swallowed, then forced a smile. “Just fine. I wasn’t feeling well, must’ve been from being out in the sun too long. I’m alright now, though. Sorry for walking off on you.”

“No, it’s okay,” she said quickly. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Did they get enough photos?”

“Yeah, fortunately they had enough. Rachelle wanted me to tell you that it was a success, and you did a wonderful job.”

Her posture relaxed and her expression perked up. “Really? That’s such a relief! Could you thank her for me, she taught me so much. As well as your father. And thank you, too, Adrien. I had a really great time!”

He simply nodded. “The photos will be in the next issue of MAGAZINE, if you want to look out for them.”

“I definitely will, thanks!”

Adrien turned back to the guys, and Marinette went off to talk to the girls.

“Everything okay, dude?” Nino asked, placing a hand on his buddy’s shoulder. “You seem a bit...off.”

He shrugged. “I’m okay.”

“Did something happen at the shoot? Other than Luka showing up, anyway.” 

“You know about that?” Adrien asked, trying not to sound too surprised.

“Yeah, Alya told me. Marinette said he showed up. Then when you left, they went out to grab something to eat. I know you told Marinette just now that you’re alright, but are you sure? I know you don’t enjoy the photoshoots much, but I thought with her there it’d be a bit better.”

“Marinette being there made it a million times better. I got tired and restless so I decided to take a walk and spend some time alone, that’s all.”

“Okay, if you’re sure you’re alright… don’t be afraid to come to me if you need to talk, dude. You’ve helped me with so much, it’s the least I can do for you.”

“Thanks. So what did you need help with on the homework again?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter is nearly done and another chapter later on has been finished. x3


	4. Chapter 4

_Several weeks later_

 

“Is Adrien okay? Ever since the photoshoot, I feel like something’s wrong.” Marinette had called Nino over that morning. She was getting seriously worried about Adrien now. His smiles seemed forced whenever he did smile, but most of the time he was quiet and seemed to want to be left alone. “And it’s gotten worse since our photos published in MAGAZINE last week. I’ve asked if there’s something wrong, but he just brushes me off. I don’t want to push him too much. Have you had any luck?”

Nino removed his cap and shook his head. “I keep trying to let him know I’m there for him, but whatever it is, he just won’t open up to me and talk about it.”

“Do you think it has something to do with his dad?” she asked anxiously.

“Nah, if it was something about his dad, he’d tell me. That’s one thing I do know.”

Marinette scratched the back of her neck as she thought. “Maybe he could use some time to hang out with friends? Just you, me, and Alya. Maybe I could ask his dad if he could have some time for that.”

He sat down on on Marinette’s trunk. “Think he’d agree to that?”

“I think if he’d agree to it at all, it’d be if I asked him. Unfortunately it’ll have to be later in the afternoon if at all today, I have plans with Luka this morning.”

“You’ve been spending a lot of time with Luka,” he pointed out. “Are you guys together?”

Marinette turned a light shade of pink. “I… I guess so? Not officially, but it feels that way.”

Nino smiled, but she noticed there seemed to some sadness behind it. But she didn’t question it. “What about Adrien?”

“What about him?”

“Are you over him?”

Marinette opened her mouth but stopped herself. After a few moments, she shook her head. Her eyes didn’t meet Nino’s. “No, I don’t know if I’ll ever really be over him. But, as I’m sure Alya’s shared with you,” she made a face and stuck her tongue out, “I think it’s better this way. I can speak to him like a normal person now, have you noticed? It’s like when I stopped trying to go after him, I could suddenly form coherent sentences when talking to him. Also, the fact that he told me he was interested in Kagami, I thought it better if I backed off. He has no interest in me, so why try to force it?” her voice went up a couple of octaves as she tried to mask the hurt. “Besides, Luka’s great. We get along really well, and if he’s happy, then I should be, too.”

“Except something’s making him miserable. Maybe you’re onto something, though. Do you think it could be about Kagami?”

She hadn’t thought of that. “I suppose so. I don’t see her much, and I try to keep it that way. Since Adrien’s so closed off, it could be.”

“If he’s able to hang out later, I’ll ask him about it,” said Nino. “If not, we’ll try to figure out another way to find out.”

They nodded in agreement to each other. Then without another word, he put his cap back on and headed back home to discuss things with Alya.

 

Later that morning, Marinette approached the Agreste mansion, her nerves getting the best of her. She had to do this, for Adrien. She repeated this whenever she felt her anxiety climb too high, until she rang the doorbell.

“Yes?” she heard Nathalie’s monotone voice answer.

“Hi! Um, I was wondering if I could speak to Mr. Agreste? It’s about Adrien. If he’s too busy, would it be possible to discuss it with you instead?”

“...Is everything alright?” Nathalie finally said, her voice starting to fill with concern.

“I’m afraid not,” she answered.

“Come in.”

The gate clicked and opened, allowing her onto the property. Nathalie waited at the top of the steps for her.

“Unfortunately Mr. Agreste is very busy right now, but please, tell me what’s going on with Adrien,” Nathalie gestured for her to come in and led her to her office.

“I-Is Adrien home?”

“No, he’s at basketball practice. He won’t be home for another hour.”

She let out a sigh of relief. “I was hoping he wouldn’t be. You see, lately Adrien’s been really distant and quiet. Something’s definitely wrong, but he won’t even hint at what’s bothering him to any of his friends. And his smiles, whenever he does manage to, they’re forced. We’re all really worried about him.”

Nathalie’s business-like expression started to melt away, and concern and worry took its place. “You’ve noticed it, too?” her voice quiet.

She nodded sadly. “It started that day at the photoshoot, but I can’t figure out what happened. It seemed to be going just fine.”

Nathalie hummed. “I’ll see what Mr. Agreste would like to do about this.”

“Actually, Nino and I came up with an idea. We thought it’d be worth a try, anyway, but since we don’t know what’s wrong, we’re not sure if it’ll work.”

She encouraged her to continue.

“This afternoon, would it be possible for Adrien to meet me, Nino, and our friend Alya at the Ferris Wheel, around 5? I know you’ll have to run it by Mr. Agreste first if his schedule is free, but we’ll be there waiting for him if he can make it.”

“I’ll talk to his father. If today won’t work, maybe we can try another day. I’ve been noticing a change in him, but of course, he’d never open up to me about anything. I really appreciate you looking out for him, Marinette. I’m glad he was able to make a friend like you.”

“Not at all, I-” she stopped herself. “He’s a good person who deserves friends that’ll care about him. It’s the least I could do,” she said as she stood up. “If there’s anything I can do to help him, please let me know.”

Nathalie got to her feet as well and started heading for the door. “I will, thank you, Marinette.”

 

“What? Why haven’t you told me before this?!” Gabriel bellowed.

Nathalie looked at the ground. “I wasn’t sure if it was anything to worry about. Other than seeming more reserved and...emotionless,” she said the word carefully, a bit concerned at how Gabriel would react. “Which isn’t too drastically different from usual, I thought maybe he was just tired or dealing with something at school that would resolve itself. It wasn’t until Marinette stopped by today that I knew it was something more than that, sir.”

“Hmm,” Gabriel tapped his chin as he considered Marinette’s suggestion. “I do trust Miss Dupain-Cheng. She’s very talented and a very kind girl. Adrien told me she kept him from getting attacked by that swarm of people that were after him when he snuck out of the house to see Emilie’s movie…” He was silent, thinking it over carefully. If he was being honest with himself, he had felt an increase of negative emotions coming from his son, he just didn’t know how to approach him about it. “Alright. If Adrien would like to go, he may.”

“I will let him know about the invitation, sir.”

“Please tell him I want to see him tonight as well.”

Nathalie bowed her head. “Of course, sir.”

 

“You know what, Plagg, I’m going to get Marinette’s opinion on what I should do. Maybe if she doesn’t know it’s about her, she can help me figure out what I should do. I don’t know how much longer I can take this,” he bursted out after pacing around his room. 

“That’s a step in the right direction, anyway,” Plagg muttered between bites of Camembert.

“Plagg, claws-”

“WAIT!” the Kwami screamed. “I’m not yet done with my Camembert!”

Just then he heard a low knock on his door and Nathalie walked in. “I have some things to inform you about.”

Adrien tensed, partially because he was nearly busted, partially waiting for bad news since Nathalie’s visits usually didn’t mean something he thought was pleasant was going on.. 

“One of your classmates came by earlier and asked if you would like to spend some time with some of your friends this evening and your father is allowing you to go.”

His head tilted to the side. “Someone came by to ask if I could hang out? And father _agreed_? Who was it?”

“It was Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

“...Marinette?” Marinette. Of course, what couldn't she do?

“She’s really concerned about you. She’s noticed how sad you’ve seemed lately and wanted to try to help. So she arranged it for you to spend time with her, and your friends Nino and Alya.”  
For the first time in weeks, Adrien felt the empty darkness that’s been taking control over him ease its grip a little.

“Would you like to go?”

Marinette went out of her way for him. Having a chat with her as Chat Noir could wait. “Yes, I would. Thank you, Nathalie. And thank Father for me, too.”

She nodded once, her usual blank expression was altered slightly by the corners of her mouth twitching. “Your father would like to see you when you return.”

Adrien waited for Nathalie to leave. “I guess we’ll have to wait a bit longer to visit Marinette as Chat Noir, Plagg.”

“Maybe you won’t even need to after today!”

“Maybe…” he agreed halfheartedly. Although it was wonderful for her to arrange to spend the day together, this was very much Marinette, wanting to help out a friend who needed it. Nothing more than that. At least, that's what he told himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "What goes up must come down."
> 
> Now, I haven't read a lot of fanfiction to know, but I've never seen what I'm going to have in the next chapter (though I'm sure it's been done before somewhere).   
> Please just remember that although it'll be getting _very_ angsty, that there will be a happy ending worth getting to, I promise!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so it begins.

Waiting around for Adrien at the foot of the Ferris Wheel made the three friends very nervous. None of them spoke, but exchanged looks with each other, and each look expressed enough to know what they were thinking:

Would he be allowed to come?  
Would he want to if he’s been given permission?  
And if he does come, will it help or just make matters worse?

 

Only a couple of minutes past 5, Adrien was dropped off by his bodyguard. The second they saw him, all three got on their feet, and Marinette, along with Nino, rushed up to him.

“Buddy, you made it!” he exclaimed with a hearty laugh.

Marinette was so ecstatic and relieved, she was absolutely beaming. “I’m so glad you came, Adrien!”

He turned to Marinette, a genuine smile spread across his face. “Thank you for going out of your way to set this up, including coming by the house and asking for permission. I bet that wasn’t very pleasant.”

“Of course, I don’t like seeing you unhappy,” she gently grabbed his arm. “And Nathalie was very willing to talk to me and help you. I thought one of the things you may want to do is ride the Ferris Wheel with us for real this time, not just through a screen.”

“You were right, I’ve never ridden it before,” he said sheepishly. 

“No time like the present, Agreste!” Alya shouted, grabbing Nino and Marinette’s arms, and pulled them along. Marinette hadn’t let go of Adriens, so the four with their arms interlocked, set off to ride the Ferris Wheel.

They saw landmarks all four had been to as their superhero personas quite recently, but none had been as their civilian selves in a long time, or at all. Marinette suggested visiting them together once they were done on the Ferris Wheel.

 

From landmark to landmark they went, stopping along the way at little shops or to sightsee what else the Parisian streets had to offer. Adrien’s heart lightened with every passing experience, and he felt himself enjoying himself, his worries forgotten.  
His friends stopped anxiously checking to make sure he was okay. Things felt pretty normal, as if the past few weeks hadn’t happened. After they got off the Ferris Wheel, Nino had carefully asked him if he was having issues with Kagami. Adrien looked thoroughly confused and asked why he was bringing her up. Nino just brushed it off and gave Marinette a shrug and shook his head, and their fun day continued on.

 

But like all good things, the day was finally drawing to an end. He really didn’t want to leave them, but he was going to be picked up in 20 minutes. The only thing that made him okay with the idea was that as soon as his father no longer needed him, he’d be back out into the bustling city to pay Marinette a visit.

Let’s go stop over there and get some souvenirs,” Alya suggested, pointing to a little cart covered in trinkets that were especially for foreign tourists. 

“Cool,” Adrien said. They surrounded the cart, the girls talked about how cute some of the trinkets were. Tiny Eiffel Towers, Arc de Triomphe’s, and charms in the shapes of Paris’s finest patisserie hung up for them to admire.

“Let’s get these!” Marinette gushed, holding up croissant and Eiffel Tower charms.

 

“AHAHA I SEE YOUR FUTURE, AND IT IS BLEAK!” shrieked a woman’s voice. Screams erupted from the nearby cart. 

The teens heads snapped to the source of the commotion.

“Uh, Nino and I are going to go find a safe place to film this from,” she grabbed Nino’s hand and tugged, not allowing him a chance to protest. 

Marinette and Adrien stared in shock as they left, and were left totally alone together.  
They were both trying to figure out a way to leave the other alone to transform. 

“Um… I think I’m going to go back to the cafe, I left my phone and my mom will no doubt call me to see if I’m okay.”

“Good idea. I’ll wait here for you.”

Marinette looked him over a moment then nodded. “Be careful!” she called back as she was running away.

“Alright Tikki, spots on!” she cried the moment she found a secluded spot. 

Chat Noir was already on the scene when she arrived. 

“Someone’s a little upset at being called a fraud,” he laughed. 

“I am NOT,” the akuma roared. 

“You can’t see the future,” he tsked, shaking his head. “Not without magic.”

“But now I have some, don’t I, Kitty?!” she purred. “Oooh look at the crystal ball, darling. Your future is filled with absolute darkness, befitting of the suit you wear! Would you like to see?” The akuma held out her crystal ball for Chat Noir with a twisted expression, he suddenly froze as his eyes locked on it.

“No!” Ladybug screamed, throwing her yo-yo at him and pulling him to her. “Are you okay?” she asked when he was safely by her side.

“Y-yeah,” he stuttered. “I’m okay. Now we know where the akuma is, anyway.”

“Lucky Charm!” she called, and a magnet fell into her hands. Wordlessly, she looked around, and with unease, she turned to her partner. 

“I’m afraid I need you to keep her occupied with that crystal ball.”

At first he was eager enough to do it, until Ladybug’s expression clued him in on what she meant. He was going to have to look into her crystal ball long enough for Ladybug to get it off of her.

“Oh, okay,” he said weakly. “I can do that.” He hadn’t seen much, but he knew that the akuma wasn’t lying when she said his future didn’t look very bright.

“I’m sorry, Chat Noir.”

“Don’t worry. Just let me know when.”

She moved a few feet to the left, and gave a swift nod. Chat Noir approached the akuma.  
“I think you’re onto something about this seeing the future stuff.”

“D’you want to see more of your future? I may not know the events, but I can promise you, they won’t be pretty,” she cooed dangerously.

“Hit me with your best shot, Fortuness,” Chat Noir said with a straight face.

With a contented sigh, Fortuness waved her hand over her crystal ball. Chat, having closed his eyes to prepare himself, opened them slowly. The ball itself didn’t play the future scenes, but it came into his mind’s eye in a sudden montage of flashes.

_Marinette telling Adrien that she was dating Luka._

_Chat Noir accidentally seeing Ladybug detransform._

_Adrien removing his Miraculous and handing it over to Master Fu._

_Watching years go by, growing lonelier and lonelier, with no sight of any of his friends. Struggling._

_Ladybug with a new Chat Noir to save the day._

_His father succumbing to madness without his mother, and he wondered if he was headed on the same path._

_Alone, completely alone, in his enormous mansion. No father. No Nathalie. No Bodyguard. No Plagg. No Marinette._

_News about Marinette’s engagement. News about her wedding. News that she was welcoming a child into the world. And another._

_Seeing her with her family for the first time. Years since he had seen her. Pain of the worst kind, pain that felt like he was being crushed, overwhelmed him, suffocating him. A black butterfly approaching. A cold, twisted voice ringing in his head that he couldn’t fight. A glimpse of what he would become in a window’s reflection…_

“NOOOOOO!” he screamed loudly, echoing down the street in a haunting tone. Tears streamed down his face.

Ladybug got close enough to use the magnet on the crystal ball’s metal base. She tossed the ball, once it was in her hands, with glass end down, and it shattered everywhere, exposing the akuma. 

She swung her yo-yo with one fluid flick of her wrist, capturing the butterfly and releasing it again. After tossing the magnet in the air and fixing all the damage that had been done, she rushed to Chat Noir’s side, who was sobbing uncontrollably.

“K-Kitty…?” she crouched down in front of him, her hand rested on his shoulder. Her bluebell eyes were wide with alarm “Chat... I -”  
She gasped when Chat Noir suddenly wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him, his crying continuing on. She could feel him shaking as she wrapped hers around his back. 

“Shhh, please,” he breathed. “I-I’m not ready… I’m not ready to let go. Please,” he begged her. “Please.”

Ladybug didn’t say anything, but hugged him a bit tighter. 

“It’s okay, it’s okay. I’m so sorry, Chat Noir, I shouldn’t have made you do that, I’m so sorry,” she whispered quietly. 

She felt him shake his head. Her earrings began to beep after a minute, but she didn’t loosen her hug. 

“Your e-earrings,” he sniffled. “You need to go.”

“I can stay another minute,” she said softly. But he broke away from her.

“No, you shouldn’t cut it too close. I’m not worth that.”

She started to protest, but he stopped her. “I’ll be fine,” he lied, wiping his cheek with the back of his arm. “Don’t worry.”

“Don’t worry? How can I not? Chat -”

“Ladybug, go,” he insisted. She looked very hesitant to leave, but she did as he wanted. 

Alya and Nino had helped the woman who had been akumatized, both of their focus now switched to Chat Noir. He sniffed and wiped his face again, clearing his throat. 

“Thanks,” he mumbled to them and left the scene without another glance back.

 

“Adrien!” Plagg started immediately after detransforming. “Please, don’t tell me you’re serious! That - that might not have even been your future!”

He didn’t look Plagg in the eyes and turned his head away. He opened his shirt for Plagg to hide, but said nothing.

“Adrien…” he whispered, his tiny shoulders slumping. “I’m so sorry, kid….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in danger of crying multiple times while writing this. I've been in this mindset of Adrien's for days now, so I didn't quite get there.
> 
> And it's just going to keep going.


	6. Chapter 6

Adrien went back to his friends, his good mood gone. But he hid his pain and his fear well. Just a bit longer, he thought to himself. When he was home again, he could let it all out. He just needed to get past his friends and his father. 

Marinette could sense something had changed in Adrien again when he met up with him again before he left, and she thought his eyes looked a bit red, but the sun was setting so she couldn’t be sure if she was seeing it properly.

 

An hour later, Adrien had left his father’s office. He was asked if he was doing alright, so he put up his best front and told him that everything was great. Gabriel had grunted in disapproval, maybe he could tell he was lying, but it didn’t matter as he wasn’t pressed further.

His bedroom door shut behind him, the sound echoing around his large room. 

 

“Are you going to see Marinette now?” 

Adrien shook his head. “She’s going to end up with Luka. There’s no point now.”

“But she’s Ladybug, and you’re Chat Noir. I’m telling you, that means something.”

He didn’t comment. 

“Transform. Think about going to see her.”

“I was going to transform anyway,” he blurted out. “It’s easier to deal with everything when I’m Chat Noir. Plagg, claws out!”

He looked up out his window, the sky almost completely dark, and with a sigh, he catapulted out into the fresh air.

 

“Tikki, what have I done? I never should have used Chat Noir as a distraction like that. I knew it bothered him the first time, and yet I had him look into the crystal ball again! Who knows what he saw, but to see carefree, happy, and goofy Chat Noir brought to his knees, sobbing uncontrollably was probably the worst thing I’ve ever seen. It’s going to haunt me.” 

“You did what needed to be done to fight the akuma, Marinette, it’s all you can do.”

Marinette was pacing her room. She shook her head vigorously. “But my way of handling it didn’t have to hurt him. There had to have been another way! If only I would’ve tried to find some other way...”

_“I-I’m not ready… I’m not ready to let go. Please.”_ The words echoed in her mind, over and over. She felt his arms grip around her like a vice, out of desperation. 

“There’s no use thinking about what you should’ve done differently,” Tikki said wisely, “but instead you can try to figure out how to help him.

“Do you think Chat Noir would come by to look for me, like he did last time when he was having issues about Ladybug?”

“You never know! I think there’s a good chance of it.”

The corners of Marinette’s mouth went up very slightly. She rushed up the steps to her bed and out the trap door to wait on the balcony.

 

Just when she was about to head inside for the night, she caught a glimpse of the usually exuberant superhero, who looked as if all the energy had been drained for him. She thought he was on his way to see her, as he came closer and closer to her house. But then he stopped.  
Puzzled, she squinted her eyes into the dark night to try to see him better, but he wasn’t looking in her direction.  
For some reason, she got the feeling like she shouldn’t be seen watching him and took a seat in her chair, just out of his line of sight.. Every few seconds, she’d take a peek, and she noticed he looked like he was debating with himself. At times, he was closer, other times further away. Was he really trying to figure out if he should talk with her or not? 

_Please, come talk to me._ Marinette repeated over and over in her head. 

But when she looked again, Chat Noir was taking off in the opposite direction, and he didn’t show up again.

 

Time passed. Adrien was continuing to be distant, keeping to himself even more than he had before. Alya and Nino were very confused, as he seemed to be like the old Adrien just before Fortuness got akumatized only worse. He was even more closed off than he had been. Even Marinette couldn’t get him to talk, and actually, her presence stirred something in him that brought out a side to him they had never seen. 

He was detached, cold, and it was as if all his effort was put into remaining polite when he had to speak or look at her. Sometimes it appeared as if he was going to start yelling.

 

One afternoon, Luka came by the classroom to look for Marinette. School had just let out, but most of the class still remained hanging around. 

“Are you ready?” Luka asked gently, a warm smile spread across his face. 

“Ready for what?” Adrien asked abruptly in a cold tone, startling Marinette and catching Luka by surprise.

“Oh, hey Adrien! I’m taking Marinette to an event Jagged Stone is hosting. She’s been asked to work on some projects for him and I’m helping her out, so Jagged invited us along.”

Adrien just stared without speaking, not appearing to have registered Luka’s words. When they were about to head out of the classroom, Adrien stood up from his seat and went to Marinette’s side. “Can I talk to you for a minute?” he asked, his voice low.

She nodded and glanced at Luka.  
“I’ll meet you outside,” he said, his smile never wavering.

Adrien waited to speak until he was out of sight. “You and Luka?”

Marinette searched his expression. She couldn’t quite figure it out. Adrien looked like he already knew the answer to that question but just wanted confirmation. His jaw was set, his eyes never meeting hers, and they trailed up and down as he waited for her to speak.

“Luka and I...we’re together,” she admitted. It felt really strange for her to be telling Adrien this. They were friends, yes, but it hurt to tell him. It was like her words were covered with needles, and as they escaped her heart, hundreds of those tiny needles were stabbing it, causing it to throb.

Adrien let out a quick breath, his eyes closed in concentration. “That’s really great, Marinette. I’m happy for you,” he forced out. She could tell he was trying to sound genuine, but he couldn’t pull it off. Marinette knew perfectly well why it hurt her to admit this to him, but why was Adrien reacting like this? Had something happened to him and having to hear about this just annoyed him?

“Adrien -” she started. He answered her with a strained smile. “Have fun. I have to be heading home now. Later.”

Luka came back in once Adrien had left. “Is everything okay with him?”

Marinette was anxiously staring at the doorway. “No, it’s not.”  
He sat down by Marinette, putting his arm around her. “Do you want to go and talk with him?”

 

“I do, but I’m afraid he won’t talk to me about what’s wrong. He’s not talking to anyone much lately, and believe me, Nino, Alya, and I have all tried.”

“Oh, I see,” Luka’s brow furrowed, he glanced at the doorway as well. 

“I’m ready to go,” she broke Luka away from his thoughts. “I still have to run by my house first to pick everything up, so we have to hurry if we’re going to make it in time!”

“Ah, right, lead the way!”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien makes a decision. Plagg and Tikki meet.

“It’s like a checklist I have to get through,” grumbled Adrien at his locker. “Just waiting for the next horrible event to happen to check another one off the list.”

“You can change things! Just because you saw something happen, doesn’t mean it has to have the worst possible scenario attached to it.” Plagg offered. “For instance, just because you discover who Ladybug is, it doesn’t mean you have to give up being Chat Noir.”

“But I do, Plagg, I really do,” he sat down on the empty bench. “Once she knows I know, it’s like I’m breaking her trust. I’m going to put her in danger. That’s why she and Master Fu are so adamantly against us knowing about each other. What other alternatives do I have? Hope for the best that Hawk Moth won’t get her identity out of me? I can’t do that to her. Marinette deserves better.”

“You could talk about it with her. Let her know what’s going on and you can decide what’s best together. I know the thought of you giving up being Chat Noir wouldn’t even cross her mind.”

“And that’s precisely why! That’s not the kind of choice a good superhero makes!” Adrien’s boomed a little too loudly. Plagg shrunk back nervously. “She’d put herself in danger for me and I can’t allow her to do that! I can’t even put her into the position to choose.”

Plagg sighed. “Fine. Don’t listen to reason. Have fun at fencing practice.”

Adrien watched him phase through his locker. No doubt to go sulk with a couple of wheels of Camembert. He felt bad. He didn’t _want_ to give up his powers and the only real freedom he had. He didn’t want to give up the only friend he always had by his side. And he certainly didn’t want to give up Ladybug - or more accurately, Marinette - but no matter how he looked at it, there was no other way. He couldn’t have it all, and he wasn’t going to sacrifice her or her friends and family being in harm's way because of his selfishness. She was too important for that.

 

\---

The next day, Marinette sat under the tree that she visited during the photo shoot. It was quiet and calm in the cool shade under the canopy. She could hear the water sloshing around the bank of the Seine, the birds chirping, and the sound of the branches swaying in the wind. It was absolutely beautiful and oh so very peaceful. But she didn’t think twice about any of it.

Right now, her mind was on the photoshoot. That was the turning point when everything went wrong. Something had happened that made him walk away from the shoot, something he never would do, as it was guaranteed to upset his father.

“Who all was there at the shoot that day?” Marinette muttered. There was her, Adrien, Rachelle, the makeup artist, and three or four other members of the crew she didn’t know the names of.

“Luka showed up,” Tikki said. “Just before he left the shoot.”

“But it couldn’t have been because of him. Luka and Adrien have always gotten along.”

Tikki sighed sadly, the noise unheard by Marinette.

“I’m going to try to text him again and see if he replies this time,” she said as she fished her phone out of her bag.

“Good idea.”

 

 **Marinette [4:18 PM]:** Please talk to me, Adrien? I know something happened at the shoot that upset you and I want to help you if you’re dealing with something.   
**Marinette [4:25 PM]:** It’s not because of me, is it? Did I do something wrong during the shoot? Is it that you’re mad at me? Because if I did and you are, I’m so sorry Adrien! Whatever it is, I’ll try my best to fix it. Please, please answer after you’ve read this. We’re really worried about you.

 

Adrien took his phone out of his pocket as he fell back on his bed. He let out a heavy sigh.  
“She thinks it’s her fault. She thinks I’m _mad at her_. I hate that she jumps to that conclusion. It’s me! Not her....”

“Well kid, you’re angry, and it does have to do with her. What do you expect? You know how perceptive Marinette is.” Plagg was across the room eating cheese, still semi-pouting. 

He sighed and wordlessly tapped out a response.  
 **Adrien [4:36 PM]:** I’m not mad at you, Marinette! And you didn’t do anything wrong at the shoot. I’m just dealing with some things, that’s all. It’s okay though, I’m dealing with them. 

“You didn’t answer her question asking if it’s because of her.” Plagg had floated behind him to read his texts over his shoulder. 

“You’re right, it does have to do with her. But it’s not her fault and I don’t want her to get the idea that it is,” he grumbled. “I don’t think she’s going to let this go until she knows I’m fine. And I won’t be fine. Marinette never gives up when someone she cares about is upset and Ladybug is able to figure things out too well. I can’t have her making all the wrong decisions that’ll hurt her just so I don’t have to lose her as quickly.”

“So what are you going to do?” 

Adrien leaned his head back, looking up at his ceiling for a few moments. 

“We’re going to set everything in motion.”

“You mean…?”

Adrien sucked in a shaky breath. “Next Akuma attack. I’m going to purposefully watch her detransform, where she can see that I’ve seen everything so there are no excuses or trying to reason out of it.”

“But Adrien!” Plagg protested. “This is crazy!”

“It’s not,” he said with a shake of his head. “I’d rather not delay the inevitable. It’s just too hard, Plagg. Knowing that my time with her and my time with you is so limited. I’d rather cut it off cleanly here.”

“But Adrien…” this time his voice was shaking, a hint of desperation rang through it. “Please, think about what you’re doing. It doesn’t have to be this way. I’ve been trying to tell you this, sometimes things aren’t as they seem.”

 

“Ever since I looked into Fortuness’s crystal ball and saw Ladybug’s identity and saw her with Luka. Both have been proven true, the rest will follow. This was already set. There’s no going back from it.”

 

Plagg waited until Adrien was asleep, which ended up being way later than he hoped for. The poor kid kept tossing and turning until his sleep deprivation over the past few days caught up with him.

The Kwami rushed out the window, flying through the night sky the short distance from Adrien’s bedroom to Marinette’s balcony. He hesitated outside the trap door, wondering if he should wait until Tikki woke up or to wake her up now.

After mumbling each one to himself a couple of times, he decided he’d take any wraith Tikki gave him by waking her up now.

Plagg entered Marinette’s room. She was peacefully curled up, asleep, with a small smile on her lips. Tikki was curled up on her hip.

“Psst, Sugarcube!” he whispered, gently prodding her. “Wake up!”

Tikki’s blue eyes popped open. “Plagg?”

“Shhh!” he held a paw over his mouth. “Outside,” he whispered, pointing upwards.

They floated onto the balcony together. 

“What’s wrong?” she asked him the moment they were out in the fresh air.

“It’s Chat Noir! He - he’s going to give everything up!” he cried. “I can’t convince him not to, thanks to Fortuness’s stupid visions!”

“Okay, Plagg, slow down. What happened?”

“Well… Adrien saw that Marinette is Ladybug in the crystal ball, and because of that, he knows that he’s going to have to give up being Chat Noir. So he’s planning to expose this to her soon. He said to cut things off cleanly. I don’t know what else he’s planning, but there’s something more pressing, at least for him.”

“Go on.”

“He…,” Plagg’s eyes drifted to the side and his little shoulders slumped. “He saw everything in Marinette’s future,” he breathed. “He saw that he doesn’t have a future with her. But she does with someone he knows, someone he’s friends with... and it’s crushed him. He has a miserable future, Tikki, and I’m terrified for him.”

“Oh! Well, I can warn her about Chat Noir giving up his Miraculous, but I can’t tell her the rest,” her eyes had grown anxious. “If I told her Chat Noir knows who she is, she’d panic and make the situation worse. Any chance there is of him being talked out of it will only be if she doesn’t know until that moment. As far as the rest of it goes… I’ve been trying to convince her not to give up on Adrien, but she’s so selfless, she thinks that it’s best for him to take a step back and let him be with the one he loves. I can’t tell her that that girl is her! She wouldn’t believe me, and of course, I can’t tell her Adrien is Chat Noir.”

Plagg groaned. “Why did Master Fu have this rule again?”

“A previous Ladybug and Chat Noir, remember? We never should’ve told Master Fu that story!”

“Oh. Yeah,” Plagg shuddered. “I’ve tried blocking that from my memory…”

Tikki looked down at sleeping Marinette below, so unaware, lost in her sweet dreams. “We’ll have to try to change their future. Marinette and Adrien deserve better than this.”

“I’m with you, Sugarcube! But we better think fast, somehow I don’t think Hawk Moth’s going to hold out on us today.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the break between chapters. Eager to continue working on this!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien's future goes further in motion.

Plagg was right on about the akuma. Hawk Moth decided to unleash one mid-morning, shortly after Adrien was settled in school.

“Adrien…!” Plagg’s raised voice cried as the bathroom door shut behind him.

“Thank you for everything, Plagg.” 

“No, Adrien, you are _not_ saying your goodbye now!” he hissed. “I won’t accept it!”

Adrien clenched his jaw a moment, a hardened gaze set on his face. Then he abruptly broke eye contact and glanced down. “I’m sorry. Plagg, claws out!”

“Adrien, no-!”

Chat Noir slipped out of the bathroom and ran outside to join up with Ladybug. 

“Kitty,” Ladybug breathed with a grin on her face when he showed up beside her. “Can we talk after we handle this akuma?”

He side-glanced her with a faint smile on his face. “I was planning on a chat, m’lady.”

Ladybug sighed with relief, and during the entire attack and defeat, it was as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Meanwhile, a massive weight was on his.

To Chat’s advantage though, she had used her Lucky Charm fairly early, and her earrings were just about to beep its last before her detransformation. Assuming things would be like usual when they planned to meet after an attack but needed to go off to recharge first, she wasn’t checking to make sure Chat hadn’t followed her. Marinette’s eyes grew wide with horror as she saw his shadow and backed herself up against the wall upon seeing him lurking behind her.

“Chat, what- what do you think you’re-?!”

“I know.I- I already knew before this. Fortuness’s crystal ball showed me, though I thought I accidentally saw you... But I had to do this and be the one to really break the rule that forbids us from finding out.” 

“But why?” She asked weakly, her eyes glowing with tears. “Why didn’t you come talk to me about this?” Then she stopped herself. “...Was that why you were near my house last night?”

Chat remained silent.

It began to dawn on her why he was so adamant about breaking Master Fu’s rule. “You...you’re planning on giving back your Miraculous,” betrayal, pain, and grief struck her, washing over her features. Her eyes began to well up. “No...Chat, no! Please, I-…!”

“The things I saw in that crystal have already started coming true,” he interrupted her. “This is just one of them. But I’m not doing this because of that. I’m doing this because I know your secret. By knowing your secret, your life, your friends' lives, and your family’s lives are in my hands. All of Paris knows how easy it is to control me once I get hit by an akuma’s blast,” he laughed without humor. “I’m a liability. I’m not to be trusted. And you need a partner that can give you security, who will make better choices than I can, and won’t cause so much trouble. Things will be better this way.” He forced out that last line through gritted teeth. “You were right, I never should’ve wished so hard to find out who you are.”

“But I don’t know if I can continue saving Paris without you,” she shook her head as she looked down at her feet, “You always know what to say when I’m doubting myself or scared. I rely...so much on you for that support to keep going...”

Chat stepped forward, reaching out to touch her face and wipe the tears away. “Someone else will step up to give it to you. I’ve seen it. See, I’m replaceable. What I do can be done by so many others. But you, Marinette, you’re one in a _billion_. What you do, who you are, can’t be replaced. Paris and the world need you, and I have to sacrifice myself in order for the world to keep you.”

He pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her shoulders tightly.

“You’re wrong, you know. You’ve always worried and thought you could be replaced, but you can’t,” her voice trembled into his chest. “Nobody can replace you. Please…”   
He slowly let her go and pulled away, his eyes instantly drawn to hers. He immersed himself into the most beautiful shade of blue he had ever had the pleasure of witnessing for a few moments, debating whether he should say anything more. But there was really nothing more to say, nothing would make any difference, anyway.

Chat Noir turned suddenly and jumped up onto the rooftops and out of sight, taking Marinette by surprise. “Chat, _no_!” she screamed after him. “Tikki…!” she cried urgently.

“I’m almost done!” she munched quickly on her last remaining bite. “Ready!”

“Tikki, spots on!”  
She raced after him, but once she got onto the roof, she couldn’t see him anywhere. Anxious and desperate, she spun around, looking in every direction, but there was no sign of the black cat hero.

“Where would he go, where would he go…?” she tapped her right foot as she tried to calm down enough to think. She sucked in a breath. “Of course, Master’s!” 

She reached Master Fu’s shop in 30 seconds flat, but by the time she barrelled inside, the old man was consoling a little black Kwami.

“Plagg? Where’s Chat? I need to go tell him this is crazy and bring him back!”

“Marinette… Chat Noir did the right thing. He knows who you are,” Master Fu stood on his feet and approached her. “It’s dangerous for him to continue now. You know the rule.”

“But I don’t care, Master. I’d rather be at risk than to lose him!”

“I understand. But you are not thinking clearly. You’re letting your heart cloud your judgment.” 

Marinette went and sat down on her knees by Plagg. “Everything in me is screaming this is wrong. Not just my heart. I _need_ him. Please, you have to tell me where I can find him.”

Master Fu just shook his head.

“Plagg…?” she turned to him. “You’ll tell me, right?”

“I’m sorry, Marinette. I’d love to tell you so you can go knock some sense into him, but that magic I’m under prohibits me from speaking his name.”

Tikki joined Plagg. “I’m sorry, Marinette. We were trying to figure out a way to stop him from doing this, but we were too late.”

 

“You... knew?”

The Kwami’s spared a glance at each other before nodding their heads.

“He knew if you found out what was going on, you’d find a way to stop him and you’d be in danger if you continued on. So I went along with it, hoping he’d change his mind. But by the time I realized he wouldn’t let it go and went to Tikki to figure out a plan, it was past time that something could be done... If only Hawk Moth had struck later in the day….”

“No.. no, this is all my fault. I’m responsible for this,” Marinette said firmly, getting back on her feet, her hands balled into tight fists. “I never should’ve had him look into the stupid crystal ball to distract herl. If he hadn’t seen his future-”

“Actually,” Plagg spoke up. “He was struggling with things before he even saw inside that crystal ball.”

“That may be so…” her heart sunk a little. “But that alone wouldn’t have led to him giving up his Miraculous. It’s because that crystal ball showed him seeing me detransform. And who knows what all else! I could’ve helped him with whatever’s been going on and we could’ve worked things out. Unless one of you will tell me who Chat Noir is now....” Marinette looked at each one of them, a bit of hope still rising in her heart, but all three were firm on not divulging that information. A feeling of loneliness washed over her as she started to shake.

“Fine. I guess I’ll have to find him on my own,” Marinette said with a determined flash of her eyes, then turned and left, only allowing Tikki to give Master Fu and Plagg a concerned glance before buzzing out after her.

**Author's Note:**

> Please make sure you leave a kudos and a comment if you enjoyed! They make me smile and encourage me to write!
> 
> If you're waiting for a Broken update or an update on one of my other fics, I've hit a bit of writers block with them, but don't fret! They're coming.
> 
> Follow me on tumblr @toujoursmiraculous for fanfiction updates and other ML-related blog stuff!


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